Fairy Tales

Children and adults alike enjoy fairy tales because , to a certain extent , there are universal themes which make the stories predictable Three of these themes are parental abandonment , victimization , and the all-important happy ending . Fairy tales provide an escape for the reader and a way to vicariously experience a different kind of life in which anything is possible

The idea of parental abandonment seems an anathema in a children 's story . Nevertheless , Little Red Riding Hood ventures alone into the forest to walk to her grandmother 's house , in spite of the

danger presented by the wolf . Snow White and Cinderella 's parents die and leave them with cruel stepmothers . In Beauty and the Beast , Belle is without a mother and her father is a bit of a kook who can 't look after her properly

All of the characters are placed in situations in which they become victims . The three little pigs must protect their homes from a wolf Little Red Riding Hood must outsmart a wolf who has eaten her grandmother and disguised himself . Cinderella and Snow White , on the other hand , must outsmart their cruel stepmothers in to find true love

The most common theme in fairy tales (except , of course , for the Grimm versions ) is that they have a happy ending . Cinderella and Snow White defeat their stepmothers and marry the prince , Little Red Riding Hood and the three little pigs outsmart the wolves and save themselves from certain death . A fairy tale just isn...